Chapter 25: Business in the Morgue

Chapter 25: Doing Business in the Morgue

A new day, 1 p.m.

Veteran first-level apprentice Hayden silently entered the second morgue.

He glanced at the transfer platform. The small lamp atop it was dim.

No work today.

That was a good thing.

He’d been handling corpses for three years now.

The job itself disgusted him—and was mind-numbingly dull to boot.

But he couldn’t afford to quit. Without this job, he had no idea how he’d pass the monthly evaluations.

Of the group of first-level apprentices who entered the Wizard Tower with him, fewer and fewer remained.

Some had advanced to second-level. Some had died in the evaluations. Some died while studying. And some, like him, quietly persevered.

So, even though he was utterly sick of the work, Hayden couldn’t give it up.

With nothing to do today, he walked over to the desk by the wall and flipped through a book.

But before long, he shut it with a dull thud.

He’d read these books countless times. They wouldn’t help him advance to second level.

“Thinking about it… maybe not advancing is actually a good thing,” Hayden muttered, looking toward the adjacent room. “The first stage of corpse handling is already done by a second-level apprentice. Without this job, I’d probably be like them—worrying every six months whether I’d pass the tests.”

With that thought, he had even less motivation to read.

He strolled over to the transfer platform and suddenly had the urge to lie down on it.

Just as he lifted one leg onto the conveyor, the door was knocked.

Startled, he nearly lost his balance.

Who could it be… at this time, in this place?

Could it be that new guy from yesterday?

Hayden raised his chin and ambled over to the door.

“Who is it?”

“I’m second-level apprentice, Syd.”

Hayden instantly straightened, chin to chest.

He quickly opened the door a crack and peered out to see the impatient-looking blond youth.

As the scarlet door opened a sliver, Hayden hurried out through it.

Trailing behind him was the morgue’s foul, rotting stench.

Syd frowned and took two steps back.

Hayden noticed and quickly shut the door behind him.

“I heard there’s a newbie taking over the morgue job now?”

“Yes, a loudmouthed little brat.”

“How’s he doing?”

“Uh… haven’t really seen much. Seems okay, I guess?”

Syd sneered. “How good can a newbie be? Besides, my junior wants that position.”

“Huh?” Hayden looked up, surprised.

“Can you think of a way to get that position freed up for him?”

“Vacate the post?” Hayden hesitated, fidgeting, eyes darting. “But the morgue work is assigned by Mentor Katz…”

“Once it’s available, I’ll make sure my junior gets it.” Syd rubbed his fingers together—faint white powder flaking off them.

“Th-then maybe I can… try persuading the newbie?” Hayden said cautiously.

“Heh.” Syd let out a cryptic chuckle. “If you do a good job, I’ll give you a Midnight Feather.”

“Ah!” Hayden straightened up completely, eyes nearly popping. “I—I… I’ll definitely make that brat—”

Suddenly!

“Doing business in the morgue now, are we?”

A low voice cut through their conversation.

Hayden and Syd both turned toward the end of the corridor.

“That the second-level apprentice in charge of the morgue?” Syd squinted. “Didn’t think he’d show up this early. Guess there’ll be more blood spilled today.”

But as the speaker stepped out of the shadows, Syd’s pupils shrank sharply.

Hayden almost collapsed to the floor.

“M-Mentor…”

Emerging from the corridor wasn’t some second-level apprentice—it was Mentor Katz himself.

Syd stiffened under Katz’s gaze, but remembering the mentor’s usual aloof nature, he forced himself to speak.

“Mentor Katz, we were just—”

Katz raised a hand, cutting him off. “I don’t care what you were doing.”

Syd relaxed a little. He knew Katz typically didn’t meddle in student matters.

But Katz’s next words nearly made him drop to the floor.

“Lately, a lot of maids and apprentices have died in the tower. You’ll go out and bring back a batch of fresh ones from outside—ten at least.”

Syd flinched. “Yes, Mentor Katz. I’ll head out right after next month’s evaluation—”

“Next month? No. This month! Leave tonight!”

Katz’s glare pierced through both apprentices like a dagger.

He wasn’t a tall man, but when he got angry, the pressure he gave off could crush them like stones.

“M-Mentor Katz,” Syd stammered, all arrogance gone, cold sweat pouring, “my next evaluation is soon. If I leave now, I might not return in time—”

Katz cut him off with a cold stare. “You need to understand something.”

“In the Wizard Tower, every servant, maid, and apprentice is Tower Master’s property. And you—” Katz pointed his wrinkled finger at Syd—“you’ve caused the Tower Master a loss. It’s your responsibility to make up for it.”

Syd opened his mouth, but no words came out.

A bead of sweat rolled down his temple, fell to the floor, and shattered like glass.

…

Saul found out the next afternoon that Syd had left the tower.

The one who told him? Mentor Katz.

“Syd…?” Saul’s face paled.

His fingers pressed on the book he’d just finished copying. The pages crumpled under his grip.

“But why… why is he trying to hurt me?” Saul shook his head in confusion.

“You’ll have to figure that out for yourself,” Katz said, tossing a book onto the table.

Saul looked down. It was a thin silk-bound book titled "Corpse Refinement Manual."

He’d never seen a book made of fabric before.

“I think you’ve got talent. Take it. Ask me if anything’s unclear,” Katz said casually before turning to leave.

Saul held the book in his hands.

Non-textbook wizard tomes cost at least two magic crystals per day to borrow—and manuals were even more valuable than theory books.

Katz had essentially gifted him a fortune in magic crystals.

“Mentor’s… quite generous,” Saul muttered with a faint smile.

He set the Corpse manual aside, smoothing out the crumpled book beneath his hand.

“Tss~”

A faint sound.

Saul looked up.

The lamp on the conveyor had turned bright white.

He walked over and pulled the lever with force.

The black transfer belt rumbled to life. A new corpse, shrouded in black leather, rolled out from behind the tassels.

This time, the corpse was someone unfamiliar—and had died peacefully.

When Saul pulled back the covering, the body was largely intact.

This would be his first solo dissection.

He eased into his half-meditative state.

Though the Human-Monster Walking Diagram had been slipped into his book by Syd in an attempt to kill him… Saul had found it unexpectedly suited him.

And since the hardbound book on his shoulder hadn’t warned him otherwise, he’d keep using it.

Saul picked up the tools from the table behind him.

The corpse swayed slightly. For a moment, it looked like Syd lying there.

He blinked hard, forcing himself back to reality.

“I’ve got one month… but when Syd comes back, he’ll strike even harder.”

The danger wasn’t over—but Saul had a brief window to breathe.

“It seems… as long as I’m useful, I can find some shelter. I need to make myself even more useful.”

While working, Saul kept glancing at the Corpse Refinement Manual Katz had given him.

Suddenly, he paused mid-cut.

“Corpse refinement… could it be connected to wizard body modification?”

(End of Chapter)

Next Chapter

Table of Content